Re: Sows Ear Chassis
Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2012 9:32 am
klfulop wrote:I don't know if I've mentioned this lately Gary, but......
YOU ROCK !!!!
Thanks for showing us that a lot of this "dirty work" can be done by people like us.
Hi Charles
Good to hear from you, hope life is going well and the Elite is safe. The "dirty work" is just part of the over all job, Its not a lot of fun to do but unless you pay some one else then thats what you buy into when you drag home a project. In my case, enough utter filth to keep me buried up to my neck for years. I do like my projects otherwise I would have gotten rid of them years ago. I was going to start a cleanup this spring and weed out the "never going to happen: stuff but got busy and they are all still here as I have been occupied trying to make them happen. All of my projects were at the end of there useful life cycle, I am getting to the end of MY useful life cycle and unless I kick it into overdrive and get on with it, these rocks tied around my ankle will surely pull me under and I refuse to let that happen.
SADLOTUS wrote:Great read and inspirational Gary, restoration and repair is better than a psychiatrist's sofa anyday.
Paul
Hi Paul
I think that was the idea of the post is to show people that in not a lot of time or with a lot of money you can do a lot of the work to get those "dreams" of yesterday kick started. Looking at stuff doesn't get it done, I have been looking at this stuff for several years, well maybe a bit longer than several. Anyway like most stuff its about doing a little bit every day as thats really how shit gets done.
The head came back from being surfaced and I should have gone and done some work but it was 95F yesterday and the same again today. I really didn't want to go and pick it up and sit in traffic for an hour and a half each way with Beauregard looking at me panting. I got a set of rear calipers put together at home and while thats a little on the light side of things that needed to be done, it's still progress. Today I hope to get 2 pair of front calipers assembled and maybe some other stuff. I don't think I have ever set a goal or a date. With the way I get things done, the only date thats important is the last one that has yet to be determined so I just need to use them all to the best advantage till there gone
Gary
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June 21st 12:00pm
I did up the two pair of front calipers that I had blasted and painted several weeks ago. That is I installed the stainless caliper pistons and new seals. I was set to use the new caliper dust seal retaining spring rings but I couldn't get them to hold the the dust seal in a manor that I figured would be effective. Take a look at the nice shiny ring on the left.
the retaining ring seems to pinch at one end and lift the dust seal so that water can get in and rust the piston to the outer portion of the caliper piston bore that is just under the dust seal. I had both together and tried 3 or 4 times before I said to myself that I guess the old dust seal retaining rings were going to get reused. NEVER toss anything is a good way to work when doing this stuff, you just never know what you get with todays replacement parts. I found both sets of rings and cleaned them up with the wire wheel. I had two vintages from the disassembly, one set looked like square section and the other looked more like a flattened round stock. This was not what I wanted but I didn't want the stuff to fail in a years time either so I put the old parts in. The Ring on the right is one of the Square section ones and it holds the dust shield nicely.
side by side of the new on the left and the old on the right.
The second set of fronts with the "flattened round" springs installed and ready to bolt back together.
Thursday June 21st 5:15pm
I was about 95 degrees so I wasn't doing much and I looked out on the front porch and there was a care package sitting there. I opened it up and said to myself "I guess I know what I am doing tomorrow".
Well I figured I could do a little bit to get a jump on things so I cut some plywood to rough out a lid for the RHD glove box and traced out the LHD lid to make a pattern. Got out the skill saw and trimmed it close to the lines
and then worked it on the belt sanded for a bit. seems the fiberglass has moved a bit over the years and my template is the reverse of the original LHD lid and its a bit short in height on the left side so 1 prototype done and I'll get back to this when I get a new belt for the belt sander, it a bit used up and I think its time.
Friday June 22nd 08:8:15am
Started to put all the parts I could think of together this morning. first task was to cut off the column mount tab for the LHD column. That took about 5 seconds. several clamps to hold things in position and a bit of masking tape to hold the lovely crashpad in shape. Its going to take a lot of work to get this very far away from the sows ear that it is now. Tough to even squint and see it as an Elan. I do love to see the finished product but we seem to miss out on a lot of good photos by some. The metamorphoses on many Elans is just so dramatic that you would never know that they are indeed the same. I think its a truly forward thinking person with vision that will show their Elan with the before, during and after photos. Me, I just don't care what some think and I really want to motivate people to get on with their own projects as there are no Elans beyond reclamation unless fire (or some dpo) has had its way.
Anyhow I marked the location of the mounting holes and now I need to pull it apart and see what and where they are. I don't like the gap between the dashboard and glove box so I think that I'll be making at least one possibly 2 more dashes before I like what I am seeing. Still not sure about crashpads, I think I'll have to pull off the vinyl from this thing of beauty and recover it. This project does not warrant one of the type 26 reproductions that are being offered now.
pretty close but
Seems like this is the reason for the next pattern, sure glad I have the glove box now it will solidify things and maybe I'll get the next one closer.